Great architecture often comes at the intersection of traditional building methods and modern innovation. Architect Nguyen Hoa Hiep of a21 studio combined 3D modeling with local building materials and traditional paper craft techniques to create an enormous cocoon-like pavilion made primarily from bamboo and poonah paper. Built with the help of architecture students in Saigon, the 162-square-meter pavilion showcased 17 works by seven firms that participated in the Saigon Architects Exhibition.

Completed in April 2016, the undulating paper cocoon pavilion was inspired by the cocoons of insects and assembled similarly to the way lion head paper masks are traditionally crafted by artisans on Hang Ma, a street famed for paper crafts in Hanoi. The project was completed in just 13 days and began with the construction of an iron frame followed by the erection of the bamboo frame that was then covered in papier-mâché. The pavilion was built with approximately 800 bamboo sticks and 1,200 sheets of poonah paper that cover both the shell interior and exterior.

“This pavilion has a structure rather strange to common students’ knowledge,” said architect Nguyen Hoa Hiep of a21 studio. “Through this project, we want to share with students how the work using bamboo as a construction material is formed in a new mindset.” At night, lights within the pavilion switch on and give the cocoon-like shell a glowing effect. The architecture exhibition is an annual event organized by Handhome, a networking platform for architects in Vietnam.